WASHINGTON (Reuters) – In a press conference held at the White House, U.S. President Joe Biden expressed doubt regarding the accuracy of the death toll provided by the Palestinians in the Hamas-controlled Gaza Strip. According to the local health ministry, more than 6,500 individuals, including 2,700 children, have lost their lives in Israeli attacks.
When questioned about the significance of the death count and whether Israel was disregarding U.S. appeals to minimize civilian casualties, Biden responded, “What they say to me is I have no notion that the Palestinians are telling the truth about how many people are killed. I’m sure innocents have been killed, and it’s the price of waging a war.”
Biden further emphasized the need for Israeli forces to target those responsible for the conflict, stating, “(The) Israelis should be incredibly careful to be sure that they’re focusing on going after the folks that (are) propagating this war against Israel. And it’s against their interest when that doesn’t happen.”
Although Biden did not provide specific reasons for his skepticism, Reuters has been unable to independently verify the casualty figures, which originated from the health ministry and includes the Israeli authorities’ claim of 1,400 deaths resulting from a Hamas attack on October 7.
The discrepancy in numbers has sparked controversy, with Palestinians rejecting the notion that their figures are inaccurate. The Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR) expressed concern over Biden’s comments and called on him to apologize, highlighting the confirmation of high casualty rates by journalists and the circulation of graphic videos showing the devastating impact on Palestinian civilians.
During the press conference, Biden also called attention to Hamas’s tactics of using Palestinian civilians as shields, placing an additional burden on Israel’s military while they combat the group. He stressed the importance of Israel doing everything in its power to protect innocent lives.
(This story has been refiled to add a dropped word in Biden’s quote in paragraph 1)
(Reporting by Jeff Mason, Jarrett Renshaw, Kanishka Singh and Rami Ayyub; Editing by Grant McCool)
